Richboro Man Charged In Ponzi Scheme: FBI

A Richboro man has been indicted on multiple counts of wire fraud, identity theft and passing counterfeit and forged checks in a Ponzi scheme uncovered by the FBI, United States Attorney Zane David Memeger announced Monday.

Authorities allege that between 2011 and 2014, Bogdan K. Stepien, 34, engaged in a Ponzi scheme in which he claimed to be a successful day trader and recruited friends and family members to “invest” with him.

Stepien has been charged by indictment with 19 counts of wire fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, and four counts of passing counterfeit and forged checks.

The indictment alleges that Stepien received funds from eight people and, instead of engaging in high frequency trading with those funds, he used them to pay for his own personal expenses.

The indictment further alleges that, to lull his victims into believing that he was successfully investing their funds, Stepien sent them bogus trading account statements and spreadsheets that purported to show their growing investment returns, according to information from Memeger.

In connection with this scheme, the indictment alleges that Stepien used the name, address, and forged signature of one of his victims in performing several wire transfers of the victim’s funds to an account in his name, authorities said.

Authorities say that between August 2014 and April 2015, Stepien passed counterfeit and forged checks in order to purchase luxury automobiles and real estate. Stepien is charged with using two checks, each for over $100,000, to purchase new, custom-ordered Mercedes-Benz automobiles, Memeger said.

He is charged with using one check for more than $70,000 to purchase a new GMC Yukon Denali automobile. He is also charged with using a bogus check for more than $400,000 to purchase real estate. Most of these checks were altered so that they appeared to be official checks, and none of the checks were legitimate, Memeger said.

If convicted, Stepien faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years of imprisonment for each count of wire fraud, ten years of imprisonment for each count of passing counterfeit and forged checks, a mandatory minimum two years in prison for aggravated identity theft, three years of supervised release, a $6.5 million fine, a $2,600 special assessment, and full restitution.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Nancy E. Potts.